In early May 2015, arGEN-X N.V. (ARGX) received a €1.5 million grant from the Flemish IWT (the government agency for Innovation by Science and Technology). arGEN-X creates novel therapeutic antibodies and the grant will be used to advance and commercialize the application of the NHance® technology for therapeutic antibody modifications. NHance® aims to prolong antibody circulation in the blood, which would allow for better biodistribution which leads to a reduced dosing schedule that is more convenient for patients. “We are very pleased to have received this support from IWT. As an organization, IWT has enabled the steady build of highly competitive Flemish biotechnology companies and we hope to continue this reputation with the advancement of our own novel, cutting edge research,” explains Michael Saunders, Senior Director, Targets & Programs at arGEN-X. “With the IWT grant, we aim to further confirm the benefit of antibodies equipped with NHance® by demonstrating enhanced tissue and tumour penetration with select antibody candidates.”

arGEN-X develops therapeutic antibodies for the treatment of cancer and severe autoimmune diseases. The SIMPLE Antibody™ discovery platform generates a limitless source of high quality human antibodies, impossible to generate by any other method. These antibodies are further modified to enhance their circulation time in the body (NHance® technology), to enhance the clearance of disease targets (ABDEG™ technology) or cell-killing properties (Potelligent® technology).